Nikhil Chaudhary created history on Monday, November 24 by becoming the first Indian to smash a century in Sheffield Shield.
Chaudhary played one of the finest innings of his career. He scored a brilliant 163 runs off 184 balls which placed Tasmania in a strong position. Chaudhary’s maiden first-class century helped Tasmania to build one of their biggest totals in Shield history. His inning consisted of nine boundaries, five maximums and a the strike rate of 88.58.
Chaudhary was born in Delhi and played one-day cricket for Punjab before travelling to Australia in 2020. During the COVID-19 lockdowns he got stuck in Australia and worked several small jobs while still playing club cricket.
His life changed when Tasmania assistant coach James Hopes spotted him in Queensland. Hopes gave Chaudhary the opportunity to play for Hobart Hurricanes in the Big Bash League and he eventually earned a spot in Tasmania’s first-class squad.
Earlier in the game, Caleb Jewell and Tim Ward too smashed centuries. Jewell scored 102 runs off 162 balls meanwhile Ward racked up 119 runs in 206 balls. Bradley Hope (91), Jordan Silk (56) also kept the scoreboard moving which led to Tasmania declaring the innings at 623-8.
At the end of the day, New South Wales are at 9/0 and trail by 223 runs. Sam Konstas (6*) and Ryan Hicks (3*) are the overnight batters.
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